The tragic story of Sambo the Elephant

Sambo had a sad life
Caught before the war
And put to work to earn
His food and lodging
And whats more
Found that life much harder
The pounding their feet get
Carrying tourists everywhere
Really there is no let
Up in all the extreme heat
The severity is there
Day in day out
Morning till night
In the windless air

The adversity is obvious
Suffering is long
Its really bleak and wearisome
It matters not how strong
Lack of food and water
And with muscles old and tired
In really hostile conditions
And all the time being hired
To walk the laborious journeys
Between temples which can be
Far away from each other
Its a monstrous misery

In 2012 poor Sambo was suffering a lot
And funding was made available
For a sabbatical and he got
To be retired in the mountains
For he could not work anymore
30 years of stress and strain
Had ruined him for sure

But then alas funding ran out
And his owner said that he
Couldn’t afford to feed him he must work again
And be
Carrying tourists who didn’t feel
That they could walk around
Pay their pittance and Work the elephants
Really into the ground

And that is what has happened
Two tourists felt the need
To see two separate temples
And of course that did lead
To a long trek in extreme heat
And Sambo’s heart gave out
Everybody knew it would
But his body they did flout

Tourists have to realise
Its the purest cruelty
Elephants are not buses
They share the misery
Of trekking in the hot sun
Carrying their weight
And with very little water
Of course it slows their gait

There are another 13 elephants
Who Still are working there
Suffering as Sambo was
We know it isn’t fair
Angkor Wat Cambodia
Must realise that they
Killed that poor old elephant
Because his heart gave out they say

The likes of Western Tourist companies
Should be made to check their tours
Where it involves this cruelty
They will not get our applause
For offering any packages
Including animals who
Are abused in this vile manner
Whatever else they do

This poor soul must have suffered
Terribly to be
Forced to have a heart attack
A way just to be free
Of man unkind the monster
Who sacrifices sense
For money in his pocket
For that was his defence

Thud and tramp and thud and tramp
Over the dusty street
Every step a marathon
Clearly the old soul beat
Feeling hot and bothered
A blood rush and some more
And then just falling on his knees
To not get up anymore

We are a really ugly bunch
Insensitive and unkind
All we think is about ourselves
To another we are blind
Those tourists must have realised
Their fat arses in tow
Well karma will be waiting
And then of course they will know

About Rex Tyler

I love animals. I enjoy writing poetry and delivering speeches.I like to mentor people who need help in preparing speeches and evaluations.I enjoy travel although it is much harder for me these days.I so enjoyed the Andes Mountains and Volcanoes and the Quichua people who live and thrive there.I have lots of friends around the world.
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